


You're The Stitches

by Veridissima



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire & Related Fandoms, A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Science Fiction, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, F/M, Soulmate-Identifying Marks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-11
Updated: 2018-11-17
Packaged: 2019-08-22 09:13:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,319
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16595072
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Veridissima/pseuds/Veridissima
Summary: Ned wakes up one day with bruises on his body that he can't explain.Fill for Ned and Catelyn Week 2018





	1. Snowed In

**Author's Note:**

> This is my fill for the first day of Ned/Catelyn Week 2018, for the prompt “Snowed In” :) And I'll continue having fills for a few more days :)
> 
> Originally this fic was supposed to be a fill for the “Matchmaking trope” prompt, but then my computer stopped working in the beginning of November and I lost what I had written, and I didn't have the time to rewrite everything, so I had to change my plans. It's still the same idea, but less developed and with less world building, picking five moments and filling the prompts with small drabbles
> 
> Also this idea came to me when reading the fic "Inked" by [NorthernSerpent](https://archiveofourown.org/users/NorthernSerpent/pseuds/NorthernSerpent), and really if you're a FP and Alice fan (Riverdale) go check it out - it's amazing!! I just wanted to make that shout out, even if it's a super weird inspiration, because they couldn't be more different... (only thing in common is that they all love their kids). The title is also inspired by the ship, something the actors said in an interview at Comic Con :)
> 
> After all this, I just want to say I'm so happy we have another Ned and Catelyn week and I hope all of you have a lot of fun this week!! Enjoy this fic and enjoy the week!!! Have fun!!!

The last four days had been a nightmare. The last four days they had been snowed in.

Ned didn’t mind staying at home, even if it wasn’t his own. He had brought books with him and could be kept entertained. But handling a cooped up Robert and Brandon was tremendously tiring.

He was definitely tempted to just stay in bed, to not have to deal with them, but he had always been the mature one, so he got up, pulled some pants over his boxers, and left his room, making the way through the hall of rooms to the cafeteria. He got a bowl with milk and cereals, before getting a seat on one of the tables at the back; he was already eating, when Brandon came to the table, making Ned look up immediately.

“You’re up early,” he greeted, knowing the torture was about to start early.

“I haven’t gone to sleep yet, brother,” Brandon answered, “I tried to get you and Robert last night, but he was sleeping and you didn’t answer the door,” he continued and then looked at him. “What the fuck, Ned?! What happened to your face?”

“What? What’s wrong with my face?”

“You’re kidding me, right?”

“No…”

“Ned, you have a black eye.”

“No, I don’t.”

“You do,” he said, before disappearing from the room, running away, coming back later with a mumbling Robert barely awake, and only in his boxers.

“Why the fuck did you wake me up?!” he complained, rubbing his eyes and trying to hold his hair back.

“Ned has a shiner. And do you know anything about it?”

“No, Brandon, we all went to our rooms at the same time,” he said, mouthing each word.

“Actually I went to a party after.”

“What? You didn’t get me?!” Robert exclaimed, finally sparking awake, and then finally looking at Ned, “Oh, wow, Ned, that’s bad.”

“What’s bad?” he asked, and Robert got the spoon out of his hand and ate the cereals, cleaning it up, and giving Ned the spoon back.

“I have a black eye…” he whispered, looking at himself on the spoon. Ned Stark at twenty-two had gotten his first black, sleeping, in his own room…

“How did that happen?” Robert asked, sitting down, “Man, I would have your back on a fight.”

“I was not in a fight. I was reading and then sleeping.”

“Did the book fall on your face?”

“No, Brandon, that didn’t happen.”

Before they could continue their conversation, someone came up to them and reminded Robert he couldn’t be almost naked on the communal rooms.

“I’ll go change,” Robert answered, “I’m gonna go now, Ned, but you can’t lie.”

“I’m not.”

“Okay, you’re not lying,” Brandon admitted with Robert gone, “There’s another option, Ned.”

“You’re saying…”

“Gods, boy,” Brandon said, running his hand across his face, “Put the bowl aside,” he ordered, “And come with me.”

Ned did as he said, and Brandon took him back to Robert’s room, they knocked on the door multiple times, at least Brandon did, and Robert finally threw it open.

“What the fuck do you want? I was going back down. We’re snowed in, it's not like I'm going to run away. We actually have time to figure this out.”

“No, we don’t,” Brandon said, pushing Ned in, dropping on the bed. “Ned, take of your clothes now, before I fall asleep.”

“Why is your brother getting naked here?”

“To see if he has gotten more bruises over night.”

Ned did as they said, dropping his clothes scared of what they would find. And they found something, his back was full of bruises as well, some looked old, others new, all seemed to have been done by quick punches to where his kidneys were, and then turning around, they found more bruises on his stomach.

“Ned…” Brandon whispered, and then no other words, which was a rare thing.

“Dude, you have a soulmate!!”

“They're hurt…” Ned realized.

“Yes, they must be," Robert said, "My body has looked like that, that's someone who has been in help of a fight… That can only be a guy, right?”

“Women can fight,” Brandon argued.

“They legally can’t,” Robert corrected him, women weren’t allowed to do much since Westeros survived the Long Night and it became something else completely. “And more than that, they are not stupid enough to be that badly hurt.”

“Or she’s being abused, by her father or husband or boyfriend or whatever partner they have. Or they were just caught in the streets walking home…”

“Ned…” Robert whispered, standing up and pulling him to his arms, “You’re spiraling… Calm down.”

“I’m scared… I don’t think it could be a guy… I’ve never really… been attracted to a guy…” he asked confused, “I just don’t know… but they could be hurt, whoever they are.”

“It’s going to be okay, Ned,” Robert whispered once again, pulling him for a hug, and to the bed, where Brandon was lying now, close enough to to falling asleep, it seemed. “You have a soulmate, Neddy boy, you should be happy.”

“I’m…”

“After this awful snow stops and we get out of this hell hole, we’re going to find her, or him. We’re going to find your soulmate,” Robert told him. “Now get off my bed or lie down here with me and your brother, because I’m going to sleep again.”

Ned wasn’t going to sleep now, so with his clothes back on again, he sat by the window, looking at the snow, wondering about the future, while his brother and best friend slept on Robert’s bed.


	2. Food Play

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Day 3, are you ready to know what's happening to Catelyn? So the prompt for today is "Food Play" and I sadly warn you that this didn't go the smut route - it's hopefully cute and happy!!!
> 
> Also finally, touches of the scifi element of the story in this one, but again I'm sad I don't get to do as much world building as I planned...
> 
> I hope you enjoy this and happy Ned x Cat Week to all!!!

Catelyn had spent the entire day reading, it was a luxury she wasn’t afforded often, and one of the advantages of spending time in this prison. Definitely not the biggest one. That one, and the reason she was here, was finally coming home.

She pondered if she should go down there, but that would mean facing the wrath of Lady Dustin, and this morning had been enough. The new Lady Bolton wasn’t so bad, she could be nice at times, even if Catelyn still feared it was a trick.

The bruises and wounds on her back and torso pained her as she got up from the bed. She may have won the fight yesterday – finally after four weeks finding herself in the ring every couple of days. And winning earn her three days with her siblings, but there were always consequences to entering the fight.

“Do you want me to put some ointment on your back again?” Lysa asked, coming into the room, they had done it this morning, when Edmure and Lysa had found her in the Home with them. “Before Lady Walda sends Edmure here.”

“If you don’t mind.”

Lysa locked the door to her room, keeping her two roommates out, and got the balm from the top shelf of her bedside table.

“Why do you have that?”

“After last time, I bought this at the pharmacy with my allowance.”

“Lysa, I send you that money, so you can buy fun things, like sweets or a magazine. You don’t need to worry about me.”

“You take care of me. I take care of you. I’m almost seventeen, I’ll be out next year, Cat. I’m going in the ring with you.”

“You’re not, Lysa. I won’t let you,” Catelyn promised, as she took off her shirt and pants, accepting her sister’s help.

“How bad is it?”

“I don’t regret it for one second. You two come first, and until they give me custody, I’ll continue to fight for you two.”

“But it’s not fair. It’s just creepy rich people who get off on seeing other people fight and kill each other.”

“I know, sweetling. But it’s better than the alternative.”

“Has Lord Bolton asked you to…?”

“No. I haven’t heard that from him, or stories about him. But if the need arises, I don’t think he would restrain himself from offering me to carry favors with business partners. And I don't want to do that...”

“I’m sorry…”

“Don’t be… It’s not your fault, Lysa, it’s never your fault,” Catelyn promised her, taking her hands, before turning and making sure to give enough skin access to her sister, “Now help me before our brother comes in and see these again. He’s too young to know.”

Lysa quietly applied the ointment to her body, starting with her back, moving to her torso, and legs, making sure to cover the open cuts and the dark bruises.

“I’m so sorry…” Lysa whispered again, and Catelyn could hear the tears in her voice, so she took her sister in her arms – _let the wounds be damned_ – and kissed her shoulder.

“Thank you for the help, Lysa,” she said, putting on her clothes and sitting more comfortable on the bed, against a wall of pillows, and rested next to Lysa, both under a blanket, that had belonged to their mother, and that Catelyn had made sure Lysa took with her when they were taken away from her after their father and uncle were gone (and their mom had been gone for even longer).

A knock on the door interrupted her thoughts, quickly followed by the yelling voice of her eight year old brother from the other side of the door.

“I’ll go get it,” Lysa told her, twisting herself off the bed.

“You know it’s forbidden to lock the door,” Lady Bolton said, coming into the room. “I won’t mention it again, but Miss Tully and Miss Lysa, please be more careful, we don’t want another mistake like this happening.”

“Cat!!” Edmure yelled, climbing on the bed with her, “You’re still here.”

“I said I would. I wouldn’t lie to you. I would be here always if I could.”

“Lady Walda brought cookies,” he said, not acknowledging what she had said.

“They are authorized to skip five o’clock snack, Miss Tully,” she spoke, leaving the tray on the bedside table. “I’ll leave the door ajar.”

The three Tully siblings were now alone on Lysa’s bed, and the two girls shared a look as Edmure started going on about his day at school – at least he seemed to be getting a good education, and he had food on his table everyday and a bed to sleep in every night, which was more Catelyn could say for herself.

“Did you only play today? What did you learn today, Edmure?”

“We’re talking about Essos right now – it’s interesting,” he said, before stopping his thoughts to say, “I’m hungry.” With that Lysa pulled the tray onto the bed, and took half of a muffin, before handing Catelyn the other half of it.

“I know you like the cookies, Edmure, but you also need to eat some yogurt.”

“I don’t want to.”

“It’s good for you,” she said, opening the lid for him, and he still insisted on not eating, so instead she dipped her finger on it and touched his nose.

“Eww…” he complained, trying to clean it up.

“Just eat, kid,” Catelyn insisted, but she was interrupted by Lysa putting some strawberry yogurt on Catelyn’s nose as well.

“Hey, I’m the oldest one here. Only I can do that.”

“Not true,” Lysa said, getting yogurt on her nose again, before dipping her cookie there. “It’s fun, Cat.” She said with a smile, and she could never resist their smiles, so she took on the game, picking up a cookie, taking a bit and throwing it at Lysa, before she picked up Edmure as a shield – the kid was just happy to get any cookie that flew his way.

So there they were. The three of them with food in their mouths and smiles on their lips. Their laughs were beautiful and a light, and a rare sight, but it reminded them all of simpler times.


	3. Sneaking Around

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back today, with the fifth prompt "Sneaking Around"!!! Enjoy and happy Ned and Catelyn Week to all!!!

Ned had never looked worse and it scared him. For the last month and a half, he had gotten used to waking up with new bruises almost everyday. But today…

Today, there wasn’t a hint of his skin on his body, everything was black, purple, blue or yellow. And Ned was terrified.

Terrified his soulmate was dead.

Brandon and Robert were the optimists in the situation. They both said this was the way to find this person. That was how they ended up sneaking into a government building.

Brandon’s “friend”, Ashara, and her own friend, Elia, had managed to get the keys to Elia’s husband’s work office – he was a doctor, so access to medical records, and he was important enough to have access to national records. With injuries like these, his soulmate would have to have gone to an hospital, they would need treatment.

They parked their car with a walking distance from the building and walked up to it, stopping before they could be seen, standing with their black clothes, deciding what to do next.

“Okay, how do we go about it?” Ned asked, “We need a plan.”

“I can go in and distract Rhaegar."

“You’re not starting a fight with him, Robert.”

“I can go.”

“You neither, Brandon.”

“You know you’re the only one who won’t fight him, but you also can’t lie to save your ass,” Brandon pointed out, “So you need to choose between Robert and I.”

“Robert comes with me.”

“Come on, let me go beat the shit out of him!”

“That’s the reason why I’m not letting you go, the possibility of Brandon killing Rhaegar is smaller that you doing it.”

“Okay, I’ll get him out of the office,” Brandon agreed, “And then I’ll text you.”

“Don’t. Messages could be monitored. If anything goes wrong, this is suspicious.”

“Okay. Look at the room, then,” Brandon said, “Let two minutes pass before going in.”

“It’s gonna be okay,” Robert told Ned as they waited. “She’s not dead.”

Ned wasn’t sure how many times he had been told this today, but he was still scared, this body of his wasn’t looking good. He felt Robert’s comforting hand on his back, as they looked into the office.

“Let’s go,” Robert said as Rhaegar emptied the room.

“Brandon said, ‘two minutes’.”

The longest two minutes of his life. The next time Robert said to go in, they went in.

Robert held the window open as Ned broke him first, and with both of them inside of the room, they walked up to the computer, that luckily hadn’t gone dark yet.

“Find the medic data base, Ned, now.”

Ned still wasn't that okay with touching someone else’s computer, but he knew he had to do it, he had to try and find his soulmate.

“Okay, I have the list of what’s wrong with you, type it up.”

“It’s thinking,” Ned told Robert, as he finished writing his symptoms now and clicked ‘enter’.

“Okay, read it fast,” Robert said from the door, “I can hear steps, but I’m still hearing your brother. They’re close,” he added, opening the door just a bit. “Brandon knows we’re still here.”

“There’s only one entry. One person.”

“Open it, Ned.”

“I can’t.”

“For fuck’s sake, OPEN IT,” he mouthed to Ned – sounding loud even when there was no sound coming out of his mouth.

“Her name… her name is Catelyn Tully – she’s alive.”

“Good. Turn off the computer and let’s go.”

“Should I put it in stand by? He wasn’t gone long enough for the computer to fully shut down, right??”

“Probably. Just hurry.”

They left through the window again, and outside they met with Brandon, after three minutes of waiting.

“So??”

“We’re looking for someone called Catelyn. Catelyn Tully,” Robert said, “That’s his soulmate.”

“Good, brother. She sounds hot,” Brandon said, clapping Ned’s back as they walked back to the car.

“It’s a name, Brandon,” Ned told him.

“Hot name.”

“Agreed,” Robert added, with another clap on Ned’s back.

“Let’s find this Catherine, then,” Brandon said.

“Catelyn,” Ned corrected.

“Right, let’s go find her!” Brandon exclaimed, turning on the car.

“Catelyn Tully,” Ned whispered to himself one more time as he sat on the back of the car. Catelyn Tully, that was his soulmate’s name.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promise that tomorrow Ned and Catelyn will finally meet!!! :D


	4. Matchmaking

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's the sixth day of this amazing week and what is also the prompt for this entire piece "matchmaking"!!! My plan was to only post on this day, before my computer problems, and I made this a drabble collection instead of a long oneshot :)
> 
> I also threw in a FP/Alice line in here!! Can you find it? Really is there anyone reading this who also knows Riverdale? I would like to know if anyone else gets the title :D
> 
> Enjoy!!! And happy Ned and Catelyn week!!!

It was the first time she was in the ring in almost a month – her body still hurt, but she needed to try. It had been even longer since she had seen Edmure and Lysa.

_What if they had forgotten her face? What if Edmure had forgotten about her?_

Catelyn knew they wouldn’t, but it didn’t stop her from needing to fight. She was now in the locker room – she would be in the ring in two fights.

She wrapped her body in gauze, her torso, still bruised but at least her ribs were back in place. Her wrist was still not completely in place – it was only the left one, and she would make sure to only punch with her right one. And her legs were good, she could stand her ground.

She protected her body the way she could, before pulling on her leggings and top, and making sure her hair was pulled up and controlled – someone catching her hair could be deadly for her. She warmed up until she was called to the ring, there she was, the noise around her, the bets coming and being made as she walked into the ring based on her weight, size and gender.

Her opponent was a woman today, taller than her, and as ready to fight as Catelyn. The bell rang and she step forward, Catelyn got the first hit in, but after that everything went down. Her opponent had definitely known she had been out of the game and where she had taken the worst hits, because she hit them all.

Four rounds. Four rounds until Catelyn couldn’t stand up, her mouth bleeding, her eyes impossible to open, as she was lifted up to the locker room, laid down on the bench, and was left there alone.

Catelyn was there for awhile, until she started listening to voices around her.

“Go on, Ned.”

“We’ve come this far.”

“She’s not dead, Ned.”

“Catelyn, are you okay?” a voice closer to her asked. She tried opening her eyes but she couldn’t see anything. “Can I help you? Can I clean the blood?” he asked as she tried to speak.

She weakly nodded, still wondering who this man was. He took something and cleaned the blood of her face.

“Who are you?” she asked, as she tried to get up.

“I should get you to the hospital.”

“Don’t. Can’t. Not bad enough.”

“I would disagree.”

“Don’t. Who are you?”

“Ned. Ned Stark.”

“Other people here.”

“They left. They’re waiting for me.”

“Why you here?”

“I’m Ned. Tomorrow I’ll have two black eyes, bruised fingers and my torso will also be completely black.”

“Why?” she asked confused, her mind wasn’t working at full steam at the moment.

“Every bruise you get, I get. I’m your soulmate.”

“I don’t...”

“Ohhh… maybe I’m not yours, but I want to help either way.”

“I didn’t notice. Too many of my own bruises.”

“I knocked against a table two days ago. There’s a little bruise on my knee.”

“Check,” she said trying to pull her leggings down.

“You sure?”

“Yes.” The man, Ned, pulled her leggings down looking at her knee, tracing his fingers around it.

“It’s here,” he said, his voice sounding lighter.

“You’ve been waking up with bruises every day,” she said, realizing the situation.

“Yes. It’s not been good for work.”

“Sorry.”

“Why do you you fight?”

“It’s complicated,” she said, “Help me up, I need to clean these bruises.”

“Okay, where to?” he asked helping her stand, keeping a arm around her torso.

Catelyn wasn’t sure how to answer, she normally just stayed here after a fight, she couldn’t get to her home like this.

“I can take you to mine,” he offered, seemingly having read her mind. “I’ll take the couch, you can have my bed.”

“Thank you,” she whispered, ready to go with him, and tightening her own arm around him.

“Are you sure you shouldn’t be in the the hospital?”

“No, I can’t. This is not legal.”

“You went there last month,” Ned answered, “That’s how I found you. I thought you were dead.”

“He was so terrified,” she heard another voice, the ones she had heard before, and through her almost closed eyes, she could see two other men. 

“You were badass, girl. I know you got your ass kicked, but you were really good before you fell down.”

“Robert!!”

“Sorry, Little Cat.”

“Where are we taking your girl?”

“Home.” Ned helped Catelyn into the car, and sat on the back with her, holding her close, and he kept his fingers on her pulse.

“I’m okay.”

“You’re not, but I’ll help you.”

One of the men drove, the other sat on the passenger seat, and Catelyn listened to bits and pieces of their conversation, but she couldn’t make things out.

“We’re home,” he whispered, but she was too tired to move. She heard him tell the others that she had fallen asleep, and the bigger guy picked her up and took her to their apartment, she was lain in the bed, before she was alone with Ned again.

He knelt next to her, his head next to hers, but afraid to touch her. Catelyn ended up sleeping in her still bloody clothes, he touched her enough only to free her hair from its restrains.

“I’ll see you in the morning, Catelyn,” he whispered, before covering her with a blanket, turning the lights off and leaving the room.

Catelyn’s tiredness won over after awhile and she fell asleep in the most comfortable bed she had slept in since the last time she was at the Home with her siblings. She slept for longer than she normally did, waking up with the light coming from the window – a cleaner light that she ever felt in the middle of the city.

Catelyn got up from the bed, with all her body in pain, she walked up to the window and saw the outside – here it wasn’t grey, but white, she could only see the snow and the blue of the sky, and there were no tall buildings obstructing her view.

She stood there for a few minutes. Before she adventured outside this bedroom, she was in a long hall now and she followed it to an open space. She found an empty living room, but she could hear noises from a place she guessed was the kitchen.

It was.

He turned at the sound of Catelyn coming to the room and she gasped when she saw his face, and stepped forward, taking his face in her hands.

“Your face… your eyes...” she said touching him, “Does it hurt?”

“No, it doesn’t,” he answered. “But you must be in pain. I promised we would clean your bruises, but you fell asleep.”

“Can you tell me where’s the bathroom? I would appreciate a shower before anything else.”

“Of course,” he said pointing her to the bathroom, “I’ll get you some clean clothes.”

“Thank you.”

She disappeared into the bathroom, quickly dropping her clothes and letting herself be drowned by the hot water – she was there for a longtime, until she heard a knock on the door.

“Come in.”

“It’s me. The clothes are here and a towel. I don’t really have women underwear… I put some of my briefs there, but I really don’t have anything that could work as a bra.”

“Thank you, Ned. I’ll be out in a bit. Do you have anything for the bruises?”

“Yes. It’s here too, but I can help you with it. And I’ll also have breakfast ready.”

“Thank you,” she thanked him again. She was left alone in the room again, and continued with the shower, carefully cleaning herself with the body wash she found here, before being under the water for a bit longer.

Catelyn stepped out after that and hugged herself with the towel, before pulling on Ned’s briefs, and his shirt. She threw her clothes in the water, so they could be cleaned of the blood, and got the ointment and walked out to find Ned.

“I have breakfast almost ready. I think we’ll have a bit before Robert and Brandon come out of their rooms.”

“The guys with you. I think one of them carried me up the stairs.”

“That was Robert – he’s my best friend. Brandon is my brother.”

“I have two siblings, both younger,” she let him know, walking up to him, and giving her the tube.

Catelyn then turned her back to him and rose his shirt over her head, letting him take a look of the live cuts she had on there.

“Brandon is older. I have two other younger siblings.”

“Where are they?”

“They still live at home, with my dad. Yours?”

“My dad died last year. I was eighteen. They weren’t.”

“They took them??”

“Yes. And the Boltons got them. I get time with them when I fight and win – I don’t have money to pay for the visits.”

“I know the Boltons. They used to live here, before the business with the Lannisters...”

“What do they do?”

“They run those fights, Catelyn – that entertainment. They asked Brandon to enter years ago for a lot of money, but he rejected the offer. Father told us they make people fight – they train those children in the orphanages to fight.”

“Why haven’t people done something if they know?”

“Lannisters...” he told her. “I think I’ve done your back. Do you need anything else?”

“I can do the rest. Can I just go to your room?”

“Of course. Come back when you’re ready.”

“Thank you,” she said with a sad smile.

In his room, she applied the ointment on the rest on her body, before putting on sweatpants and a jacket. Catelyn looked around his room, people weren’t allowed many luxuries, so it was mostly empty… there was a book on his bedside table – one she didn’t recognize… (which surprised her, she knew the list of permitted books, she wondered if this was a forbidden one). Besides the book, there were two photos on his dresser – a family one, with his three siblings ,a older man who looked liked him and sh guessed to be his father, and then another boy who was probably Robert; and then another one with a woman and a toddler, Catelyn imagined it was him and his mother. The rest of the room had no sign of his personal touch.

Catelyn left the room again and this time there was a lot more noise. She could hear them discussing his bruises as she walked into the kitchen to find two other men at the counter, one of them shirtless.

“Brandon, Robert,” he said pointing to the men – Robert was the shirtless one. “You remember Catelyn, right?”

“Neddie’s soulmate,” Brandon said, “Good morning.”

“Hi,” Robert said with his mouth full of food.

“I wasn’t sure what you like. I have pancakes, and eggs, and sausage and bacon.”

“There’s no more bacon,” Brandon said.

“You can take from my plate,” Ned told her.

“Thanks, but pancakes and eggs is good. Do you have honey or maple syrup for the pancakes?”

“We have chocolate,” Robert said, “and chantilly.”

“There’s also jam,” Brandon added.

“Strawberry,” Ned clarified.

“I’ll take that. Thank you.” She spread the jam on her pancakes and started eating, listening to the boys around her, and sharing a few looks with Ned as they ate.

“You were badass, yesterday,” Robert said, “We should fight.”

“Do you know how to win? Without being your size?” she asked.

“No. But I can teach to use my size against me.”

“You’re fighting again?” Ned asked.

“I need to. I told you why.”

“I know, but we can figure out another way.”

“We can, but I’ll keep fighting until then. I will not _not_ see them.”

“We can fight.”

“What?” Catelyn asked surprised.

“Robert and I can fight,” Brandon offered, “If we win, we can ask for anything, right?”

“Yes.”

“So we win and ask for whatever you want.”

“To see my younger siblings,” she clarified and then asked, “Why?”

“You’re Ned’s soulmate, that means you’re family,” Robert answered.

“We take care of our own,” Brandon added.

“And you get pretty fucked up sometimes, you almost died last month. Brandon and I are solid,” Robert continued.

“And while we do this, maybe you can see about getting them back. Our dad is a lawyer.”

Catelyn didn’t know what to do, so she shared a look with Ned, asking him for advice.

“Catelyn, we do whatever you want and are comfortable with, but their offer is serious. They are asses a lot of the time, but they will have your back. It’s a serious offer.”

“Thank you,” she said, not giving another answer right now, but appreciating that she had a new group of people to count on.


	5. Keeping Each Other Warm

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I bring you the final chapter!!! For the free choice, I ended up going with Wednesday's prompt "Keeping Each Other Warm" (Day 4) - it sounded like a cute place to end it on :)
> 
> Thank you all for reading this over the week!! And I really hope you all enjoyed it, even if it was a bit different from the Catelyn we normally see (blame too much Riverdale and somehow FP Jones inspiring Catelyn...)
> 
> It was so cool to have a Ned and Catelyn week once again!!! And I thank the people who put this up together and I really look forward to the next one!! It's always a fun time to see all this new content :) I hope you all had a nice week and see you next time :)

Ned could feel Catelyn’s hair tickling his chest and he brushed it aside, noticing the new mark on her neck – the one she had put on him last night. But besides that, her skin was pristine, none of the black and purple marks he had found on her the first time they met.

“Good morning,” he greeted her as she opened her eyes.

“It’s cold,” she murmured and he pulled her closer.

“We can stay here a bit longer,” Ned promised, kissing the top of her head.

“They are coming home today,” Catelyn said with a smile, kissing his chest. She had seen them last two weeks ago since Robert won three fights that night – Ned was always happy for her when she got to see them, but he always missed her.

For the last eight months, Catelyn had worked with his father, and Dad was able to show the courts that she could take her siblings – Catelyn insisted that they were only convinced of that, because she now had him as soulmate, that she now had a man on her life. 

“I’ve missed them so much, Ned,” she said, hugging him closer. “You’re going to love them. And Edmure is going to adore you and the guys. Also remind me to threaten them again about Lysa being not even someone they can think about.”

“I will.”

“I can’t believe they are bunking up, just so my siblings to take Brandon’s room.”

“They love you, Catelyn.” They really did, since Catelyn had come to his life, it wasn’t just them who had grown closer and given in to their soulmate connection, but she had also captured the trust and respect of his brother and best friend, and she had given them her love as well.

“I love you, Ned Stark,” she said, kissing his chest once again, before getting off the bed. Ned kept his position and from the bed, observed as she moved around, looking for her clothes on their closet. “Ned...” she called for him.

“Sorry, distracted… you’re so beautiful.”

“Get up, Ned,” she said with a smile, as she finished dressing herself. Ned finally stood as she left for the bathroom to finish getting ready for the rest of the day. He pulled on some trousers, shirt, tie and sweater – he really wanted to look presentable today – and then fixed his hair in the mirror.

Walking outside, he was surprised to find Robert and Brandon already wake, even if not properly dressed, eating their cereals with Catelyn, as they talked about cleaning up the apartment and preparing everything for her siblings’ arrival.

“Morning, Ned.”

“Good morning,” he said, taking a bowl for himself, sitting down next to Catelyn, getting his milk and then cereals. “I love you too,” he whispered in her ear, just before kissing her cheek and starting his breakfast, with her hand in his, he joined the conversation as they figured out how to prepare the welcoming party for Lysa and Edmure.

 


End file.
